Rocky View County (RVC) will be home to a state-of-the-art grain elevator following a decision by council at a regular meeting July 23.
“It’s exciting to see the agriculture business being supported with this kind of investment, and I’m especially excited to have it in Division 6 so we can contribute to the non-residential [tax] base of RVC,” said Reeve Greg Boehlke, who vacated the chair in order to act as the area councillor.
The site-specific amendment was unanimously approved, allowing for a grain terminal near Keoma, just north of Highway 9 and west of Range Road 264.
According to planner Johnson Kwan, the development is expected to include a grain elevator, rail tracks and a small office, with the remaining area left as pasture and crop land.
The completed structure will include three steel bins with 42,000 tonnes of storage capacity, according to Murray Vanderpont with applicant G3 Canada Limited.
“The special thing about us is we build loop tracks,” he said. “It has a huge benefit, in terms of reducing a turnaround time on grain cars. I think any farmers in the room will appreciate that if we can get better utilization out of those cars, there’s a huge benefit for everybody.”
The loop can accommodate 134 train cars, which can be loaded in about eight hours. Trains will be shipped out of the terminal about every 10 to 14 days, he said.
Vanderpont added the facility is also able to receive Super-B trucks in less than five minutes, which he called a “particular benefit to farm producers.”
“I’m not just saying that because I think we can,” he said. “It’s because we do it dozens of times every day at all our operating facilities.”
According to Vanderpont, G3 Canada is constructing similar grain terminals in Wetaskiwin, Carmangay, Morinville and Stettler County.
